50th full set of composite wing flap components delivered for the A330/340

GKN Aerospace has delivered the 50th full aircraft set in a $72m contract with Airbus to supply composite parts for the A330 and A340-300 wing outer landing flap. This contract, which commenced manufacture in January 2008, increases GKN Aerospace's already extensive work scope on each airframe, and places the Company as the supplier of the composite landing flap components for the complete Airbus Long Range family - which is ramping up to a combined rate of over 90 aircraft sets per year.

This delivery has involved the supply of over 150 outer wing flap components per aircraft set, including the single piece 11m long composite skin panels. All parts have been designed and manufactured at the Company's facility in Munich, where the engineering responsibility for the parts is held. They are then delivered to Airbus in Bremen where they are assembled into the complete landing flap. The contract followed an agreement with the Munich facility to supply the same set of parts for the A340-500/600 - an ongoing contract that was gained in January 1999 since when the Munich team has demonstrated strong and consistent performance.

Frank Bamford, Senior Vice President for Business Development and Strategy, comments: "This contract has been highly significant for us for a number of reasons - it has extended our relationship with Airbus as we now supply all the composite parts on landing flaps for all Airbus long range aircraft. It has also been an important move ahead in a key growth area for us - the design and automated manufacture of composite assemblies."

The GKN Aerospace Munich facility employs a high level of automation in the manufacturing process of this work package. Automated tape laying (ATL) is used to lay up the ply books of composite tape used in each part. The latest ATL machinery has been shown to be capable of laying tape at 10 times the manual rate whilst producing a more consistent end product and significantly reducing material wastage.

Bamford continues: "We are a world leader in successfully developing automated processes that will revolutionise the manufacture of composite components for the aerospace sector. This package demonstrates the level of competitiveness achieved by our Automated Manufacturing Facility in Munich, even against the current exchange rate problems facing the European market."

For the A 330 and A340 GKN Aerospace supplies a range of structural parts from its facilities in the UK, Germany and the USA, including the main landing gear doors, over wing panels, shroud box, vertical tail plane spars, leading edges and stringers and rudder spars and skins, air conditioning ducting as well as components for the Trent 500 engine.